Discovering the Runner Within

Dina Patel, a 47-year-old from Vadodara, shares her journey of discovering the runner within and becoming a certified coach. She's a runner and a single parent to her daughter. Having lost her husband when her daughter was just one month old, she handled everything that came her way, single-handedly. She tried connecting with people to become social and have friends. She had a gym nearby which she joined and started going to. Fitness was not the motive to join a gym; she didn't even think that she could get into the world of fitness. 

After several months in the year 2014 only, she heard some people in the gym talking about registering for a marathon. She too didn't want to miss that chance. Despite having low confidence in talking to people, she reached out to some people in the gym to ask about the marathon. All this while, she had no clue about what running was. When she went for practice, she saw that there was only one lady and no other person had arrived. Having no one else, they both started to run. The lady running with her was amazed by Dina's performance and constantly motivated her. Dina initially thought that the lady was complimenting her because she was running, only to realise later that she was actually doing great. She was very glad about her experience. 

"It was my first ever running experience on road and I covered 16 km straightaway without any running kit, equipment and even water."

At that time in 2014, there were no online registrations and the person had to go physically to get the registration done. Vadodara Marathon is one of the biggest marathons in India. Dina was the first one to register for this marathon and hence, got the number '001'. 

Telling about her first run, she says that the event management was flawed; there was no proper hydration system in place and people weren't clear about the concept of marathons. They would say that 'she's 001 and still running behind so many people'. All this made her feel low and question about all that she was doing. Then she got to know about a run in Ahmedabad. Going to another city was a big task at that time. Dina then travelled to Ahmedabad. This was the moment when her journey to travel to various cities began. Not only did she gain an experience of travelling alone but she also made a lot of friends and got to meet some like-minded people. This introduced her to the running community in India. Dina then went on to run marathons internationally, starting from Singapore. She has run a total of 40 half-marathons, and 5 ultra marathons to date. 

"I don't look for peace. Chaos keeps me going."  

Talking about managing her life being a single parent, Dina mentions that she has a very supportive daughter. She didn't have to stress much about her daughter's academic performance. Dina's mother too played a huge role in supporting her. Dina had her priorities very clear from the very beginning. She considers her training as her topmost priority. After running her first marathon, she got recognition which helped her in boosting her confidence. Fitness became her passion. People started to identify her as a runner. She has been very consistent in her practice and the people around her also started to know about her lifestyle and her priorities. 

“I used to lift weights at the gym and in those days, lifting weight was considered a masculine task; women weren't supposed to lift weights but I was breaking all the stereotypes and enjoyed the activity.” 

Dina has been very closely associated with the Vadodara Marathon. She is a part of their technical team too. The association wanted her to train and motivate people to run. At that time, Dina had already completed an online course in marathons training. After that, Vadodara Marathon for the first time organised a free training for the registered members. Dina too was a part of it. Vadodara Marathon got her as the coach and she trained 32 members there. 

In the year 2020, Dina started working as a coach. Now Dina has 30 members training under her mentorship. 

Comparing India's running community of 2014 to the one today, Dina says that earlier this community used to be very limited. She says that the situation has changed after the pandemic. A huge number of people have entered the field of running. The reason is that running is not a team sport; it's a solo one. Today, people have access to information about events and marathons. Coaches and running kits are also available today; people are seriously focusing on training to prepare themselves for running. 

"You don't have to tell people to adjust to you. People would themselves adjust to you when you have your priorities clear." 

Dina Patel has participated in international events too, talking about that, she says that there's a similarity between the international marathons and national marathons and that similarity is the sport itself. The difference is the arrangement of the sporting event. In India, the event is on a single day, whether it’s 10K, half marathon or marathon, everything is done in a day. In Singapore, she noticed that there were separate days for each kind of marathon. Also, in Singapore, the traffic was something that was taken care of. The arrangement was done in a way that makes the whole process smooth for everyone. In India, it is treated like a festival where people are very actively and enthusiastically cheering on the streets for the runners. The constant cheering helps the runner to stay motivated. And this was not the case in Singapore where the environment is much more disciplined.

"There's a similarity between the international marathons and national marathons and that similarity is the sport itself."

Tips by Dina Patel for Beginners:

• It is strongly recommended to do strength training. 
• One must be fit in order to run. 
• If muscles are not supportive, a person may face injuries. 
• The person needs to have his/her priorities sorted about the sport. 

Dina Patel’s Personal Best – Finished Half Marathon to podium in 2.25 hrs in home town Porbandar .

Edited by - Rishika Bajaj